Tom Brady hopes to land his fourth Super Bowl title in five tries when he leads the New England Patriots against the New York Giants in Indianapolis tomorrow.

Mercurial quarterback Brady won his first three Super Bowls - the last back in 2005 - but was beaten by rival Eli Manning and the Giants in an epic match-up two years later in Arizona.

"There's not a lot of things that you can take from that game in 2007," said Brady, who also lost to the Giants in week nine this season.

Brady's wife, supermodel Gisele Bundchen, has e-mailed family and friends asking for their backing.

"He and his team have worked so hard to get here and now need our support more than ever," she wrote. "Pray for him so he can feel confident, healthy and strong."

Manning has worked his magic in the play-offs for the New Yorkers, who scraped into the play-offs with a 9-7 regular season record. He insisted: "What happened in the last Super Bowl or the last game doesn't matter. It's all about what we do in this game."

Patriots coach Bill Belichick expects injured tight end Rob Gronkowski to play after coming through a successful practice yesterday - his first since suffering an ankle sprain in the AFC Championship Game.

Gronkowski added: "I will make the final call. I listen to the trainer's advice, but it's how I feel on the day."

The coaching match-up pitches the wily Belichick against another veteran, 65-year-old Giants coach Tom Coughlin. Win or lose, Belichick says he is not thinking about retiring after 37 years as a coach in the NFL.